


darker days are raining over me

by VolxdoSioda



Series: Whumptober 2018 (Complete) [28]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Competent Noctis, Day 28 - Severe illness, Gen, Sickness, Whumptober
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-08-08 17:05:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16433408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VolxdoSioda/pseuds/VolxdoSioda
Summary: With Ignis, Noctis can count on one hand the amount of times he's fallen sick and still have fingers left over.Gladio usually takes three to five days to be put flat on his back. Prompto longer.Yet whatever it is they've caught, all three of them are down for the count now, leaving Noctis to keep them safe as the sickness wears itself out.





	darker days are raining over me

Noctis can count on one hands the times he's seen Ignis sick in his entire life, and still have fingers left over. It's probably because, unlike Noctis and Prompto, who are foolishly brave enough to think themselves immortal to almost everything, Ignis takes care of himself and gets his body what it needs to stay healthy. 

But that's just made it all the easier to spot when Ignis  _does_ come down with something - because Ignis is incapable of having  _a little_ cold or  _a small bout_ of the flu. His body turns what should be a simple battle against a disease into an all-out  _war,_ and Ignis is left flat on his back, wheezing and coughing and sounding like he's mere steps away from death's door throughout. 

So when he wakes up that morning to the sound of harsh coughing, Ignis wincing and avoiding speaking unless absolutely necessary, he knows without a doubt his advisor is about to have an absolutely  _miserable_ next few days.

"Let's stop by the store," he suggests, and shoos Ignis away from where he's heading towards the driver's seat. "I'll drive."

He buys enough supplies to bite heavily into their reserves, but ignores the wince as Ignis takes a look at the bill. Gut instinct says he's going to need this much for the coming days, and the gut instinct of a Lucis Caelum is never wrong. His father's proven that more than enough times. He gets them settled at a haven not too far outside of Lestallum, and starts flipping through the notepad he keeps all the recipes he's capable of cooking in, looking for something to take the edge off whatever it is Ignis has.

Later that night, both Prompto and Gladio start coughing, and Noctis can only throw his hands up at the universe.

Because of course when one falls ill, they  _all_ have to fall ill.

 

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

 

Normally it takes Gladio anywhere from three to five days to be put down by a bug. Prompto takes longer still, but he too eventually goes down. 

This time however, Noctis isn't able to rouse a single one in the morning. He's the first up, driven awake by the coughing, and kept awake by the fact that he feels their faces and is shocked at how hot they're all burning.

Whatever it is they've caught, it's no idle bug. 

Which is how the universe bears witness to Noctis Lucis Caelum putting wood on the stove, and cooking up a meal that isn't frozen for the first time in forever. He brews tea, pops open bottles and jars of herbs and spices, and pulls out a recipe for soup that is made to knock anything that settles into chests or lungs out of the ballpark.

Getting them to eat it is a matter of carefully pulling them up and getting them to stay conscious long enough to down the pills, a bit of the soup, and at least a single gulp of the tea. Ignis' eyes are glazed over with heavy fever, and he mutters strange things as Noctis gently pours liquid down his throat, making sure he doesn't choke. Prompto almost seems awake, for all that he calls Noctis 'Polly' and offers to brush him, and Gladio does nothing but stare and swallow when Noctis orders him to.

All told, it's a stressful first night, and Noctis knows it's far from over. He doesn't sleep, instead pushing the beds together and bundling them up in blankets and keeping the window holes of the tent zipped. 

The vomiting starts sometime around noon, but all Noctis does is push up his sleeves and go to work.

 

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

 

The hallucinations start after the vomiting, and honestly Noctis can't tell which is worse. The vomiting is messier, but the hallucinations are just as bad, because Prompto is convinced he's fallen behind the group and keeps trying to get up and wander off, calling Noctis' name in a panic; Gladio fights things that aren't there, roaring and challenging them to "fucking man up and hit me, you cowards!" and Ignis seems to alternate wildly between being in extreme distress about something only he's seeing, and begging Noctis not to leave him.

His exact words being, "I don't want to die without him! Don't leave me, Noctis!"

Noctis grits his teeth and gently soothes Prompto, wrapping arms around him and promising he's not falling behind, he's right where he needs to be, and Noctis will  _always_ come back for him, no matter what. He dodges Gladio's punches and wraps arms around him, promising that whatever demons are out there, they'll fight them off together, that Noctis can protect them both. He takes Ignis and rocks him, soothing him and vowing not to die until Ignis is ready, promising to stay by his side no matter what. 

He feeds them more soup and more tea and more pills, diligently keeping watch even as his eyes burn and his head begins to feel heavy. He's gone longer on video games with Prom; a few nights keeping watch over the guys is nothing in comparison.

It's another two nights of hallucinations, and towards the end they get especially violent, seeming to regard Noctis as an enemy that needs to be killed. He has to get creative when they try to call their weapons out, and then rush him with nothing but their hands. Restraining them is nerve-wracking, but at least he gets them all safely back to the tent and laid down, too exhausted to fight anymore, and listens as their breathing deepens and they fall back to sleep. 

 

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

 

Their temperatures finally break the morning after that, and they sleep like the dead, waking only when Noctis needs to ply them with food and pills. Noctis takes a brief dip in a nearby lake to wash up, takes a moment to grab a spot of even briefer fishing, and then hauls ass back for the haven. 

A day, two, and then three later, and Ignis finally wakes, no longer coughing like his lungs want to erupt from his chest or his heart if fixing to give up the ghost. "Noct?"

"Here, Specs." He's exhausted, but glad to see his friends back up. Gladio isn't much longer before he's rolling out of bed, groaning and grumbling as he staggers out for his morning ablutions. Prompto sleeps another hour, and then follows. 

All three of them have no memory of anything that's happened from the time they got sick until that morning. They dine on a meal of leftover soup and freshly cooked fish, nobody complaining given they're finally back on their feet. 

And then Ignis asks the question he's been expecting. "What happened?"

So Noctis tells them. And the longer he talks, the wider their eyes get. They all look shamefaced by the end of it, Gladio especially - probably because taking a swing at his King is a show of treason. 

"Damn, dude," Prompto says, drinking down the last of his soup. "How the hell did you manage to do all that?"

Noctis just shrugs. "Eh, I just did what you guys do whenever I got sick. You feeling all right?"

"Uh, yeah!"

"Perfectly fine, thank you."

"I'm good."

"Then there's no problem. Now, if you're all done feeling guilty, I'm tired, and would like a nap. You guys do whatever it is you need to do - I should be ready to go sometime by tomorrow."

Prompto snorts while Ignis shakes his head in fond amusement, and Gladio grins. "Take your time, dude. You've earned it."


End file.
